Body Image and Self-Esteem

Body confidence declines dramatically during the summer. The more skin you see, the more insecure you feel. This doesn’t just affect females, or people who have struggled with eating disorders. Everyone is susceptible to lower body confidence, which can interfere with building self-esteem and feeling confident in other areas of your life.

If you struggle with body image issues it’s likely that you feel insecure in other areas of your life, too. When you fixate and over-focus on what you don’t like about your body it bleeds into your self-esteem. No matter your shape or your size you deserve to have the skills to combat body image issues and feel confident in the skin you’re in.

I love watching TED Talks for confidence, motivation and inspiration. These short and powerful videos allow me to learn from others, feel motivated and learn to think about life differently. There are some fantastic TED Talks for confidence and motivation that have made a huge impact in my life and the lives of my clients. In fact some of them start their day off with a TED talk instead of a cup of coffee.

Crash diets are a hazard to your self-esteem and they need to be stopped. There are many reasons why people might crash diet, such as wanting to lose weight or getting into shape. Others might be following the latest celebrity trend or taking health consciousness too far. No matter what, crash dieting is not the answer (A Starvation Diet’s Toxic Thoughts). Note that the terms “crash diet”and “diet” are often used synonymously but there is a difference. Strictly speaking, diet is simply what you eat. It can be a healthy lifestyle habit and not necessarily a short-term way to lose weight. For your own wellbeing, stop crash dieting and create healthy habits for life.

Your relationship with food may be healthy, but many times even the healthiest eaters struggle with mixed messages. The noise from the media, friends or new diet fads mess with their confidence, too. Let’s not forget why food exists: to keep us alive, fuel us and provide us with nutrients. It’s purpose isn’t to make us sick or to make us insecure. This is what occurs when your relationship with food turns abusive or damaging.

Exercise is a powerful way of building self-esteem. It’s a natural mood lifter, it provides a sense of accomplishment and it helps you to look and feel better about yourself. While it’s good for everyone, it’s particularly beneficial if you have a mental health condition such as depression or anxiety. It doesn’t matter what you do, as long as you get moving. However, it can be challenging to start or maintain exercise especially when you don’t like exercise, don’t feel like it, you’re anxious, depressed, tired or busy. The good news is that there are many ways to exercise and it doesn’t have to be something you dread. You can find ways to exercise and build self-esteem at the same time.

A healthy body image is vital for a healthy self-esteem. It means being comfortable with your own body and it’s your own perception. A poor body image can be damaging in so many ways. It’s often associated with eating disorders, depression, anxiety, low self-esteem and a range of other issues. The reality is that many people don’t like, or are ashamed of, their bodies.

Feeling confident can be tough when you are walking around in a tiny, weeny bikini. It’s not uncommon for men and women to feel a little vulnerable and insecure during the hot, summer months when many social activities involve a pool, the beach, and your swimsuit. But it doesn’t have to take a toll on your confidence level, not if are armed with these body image boosters.

If you’re insecure about your beauty, remember that the media often portrays perfected, altered images of idealized beauty to play on our insecurities. The lies about what beauty looks like leads to anxiety and low self-esteem. Low beauty confidence can even play a role in many mental health disorders, as it sets up an unrealistic ideals and creates feelings of ‘I’m not good enough.’ Don’t let the media make you insecure about your beauty–here’s how.